Foxwoods Casino workers voting on union

The first of almost 2,800 eligible table game dealers at Foxwoods Resort Casino cast their first votes at 8 a.m. Saturday on whether to organize as part of the UAW.

Erica Jacobson

The first of almost 2,800 eligible table game dealers at Foxwoods Resort Casino cast their first votes at 8 a.m. Saturday on whether to organize as part of the UAW.

Keith Coolidge Sr. of Plainfield stood in a employee bus shelter in a parking lot along Route 2 waiting for a bus ride to vote. The 12-year Foxwoods employee said he had worked the overnight shift, went out for breakfast and did some shopping before returning to vote on the union issue.

"Everybody's on pins and needles," he said.

Tension has been particularly high amongst dealers the last few days, Coolidge said, and he knew how he was going to vote but declined to share his decision.

"I probably should keep it private," he said.

Dealers voting at the casino will check in at a table outside the hotel's Sunset Ballroom staffed by three people — a board representative as well as a dealer representing the casino and one selected by the union. Each person will check to make sure the person is eligible to vote in the election.

If one party disputes a dealer's right to participate, a ballot will still be issued but the vote will be held in a separate pile to be considered at a later time should they be needed to help determine the vote.

The polling station will remain open until 11 p.m. in what is considered one of the largest union votes in recent history in Connecticut. Ballots will be counted by hand and results were not expected until early Sunday morning.